The present invention relates to abrasive grinding apparatus and, in particular, to apparatus wherein the workpieces are continuously fed in an arcuate fashion and along an arcuate path so as to pass beneath the complete width of an orbitally driven endless abrading belt.
In the production and finishing of various metallic parts, endless abrasive belts are oftentimes used to perform various rough and finish grinding operations. Such apparatus produces parts at high production speeds with relatively accurate flat, finished dimensions and desireable surface characteristics. Exemplary applications are in the grinding of cast parts such as in the automobile industry for water pumps, transmissions, cylinder heads, etc. Such equipment also typically comprises one or more driven belts, along with associated liquid cooling and waste removal mechanisms, with such equipment being positioned relative to the work so as to perform the various desired surface grinding operations.
Most typically with such apparatus, the stationary grinding assemblies are positioned such that the workpieces pass orthogonal to the direction of travel of the abrasive belt or alternatively in line with the direction of belt travel. However, depending upon the amount of material to be abraded from each workpiece, such arrangements for large metallic workpieces are energy intensive and may require excessively large power plants, particularly when single pass operation is to be achieved.
Alternatively though if the workpieces are fed to the belt at an angle and thus exposed to the abrading belt at an angle, the actual work surface exposed at any given time is relatively small due to the averaging effect of the angulated infeed. It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to take advantage of this characteristic via a turret assembly, to which a plurality of workpiece holding platens are affixed and whereby the workpieces are rotatably passed through the apparatus where multiple operations may be accomplished, such as through exposure to "rough" grinding and "finish" grinding abrasive operations. In this fashion, the workpieces are moved continuously through the apparatus and exposed to the abrading belts at an angle which requires less overall system power than would otherwise be required.
Rotational or arcuately driven feed assemblies for various grinding apparatus have been employed previously, as for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,406,728 and 2,855,730. The apparatus disclosed in each of these patents, however, is distinguishable from the present apparatus. In particular, which the U.S. Pat. No. 2,406,728 has an arcuate infeed assembly, it follows the common practice of presenting the workpiece in an orthogonal fashion to the abrading belt. U.S. Pat. No. 2,855,730 on the other hand, presents the workpiece in an angular fashion; however, it is distinguishable from the apparatus of the present invention in its structure and application.
The above objects, advantages and distinctions of the present apparatus as well as others will however, become more apparent upon a reading of the following description with respect to the following drawings.